Terminal connector



April 10, 1962 A. J. DEVAUD TERMINAL CONNECTOR Filed Feb. 13, 1958 INVENTOR. ALBERT J. DEVAUD United States This invention relates generally to magnetic core memory apparatus, and more particularly to terminals for making connections of conductor wires in magnetic core matrices.

Magnetic core matrix assemblies are generally constructed of an annular frame and a plurality of conductor wires arranged on the frame in a criss-cross fashion, with the wires connected or terminated at opposite places on the frame and permanently secured to connector terminals by means of soldering. At each of the cross-over points of one conductor wire with other conductor wires is a magnetic core of the toroidal type supported by the wires which pass freely through the aperture in the core.

One of the difficulties encountered in the past in magnetic core matrices is breakage of the conductor wire at the soldering points due to vibrations imposed upon the matrix structure. The rigid anchoring connections of the conductor wires have also proved objectional in rendering the matrices more easily susceptible to damage. This is due to the fact that the conductor wires are extremely fine and made of a non elastic material, so that any inadvertent application of even a small amount of force would permanently deform the wires out of the plane of the matrix and cause chafing of the wires against the cores, or possibly breakage of the wires or cores. This, of course, would result in time-consuming and expensive replacements.

An object of the present invention is to provide a magnetic core matrix structure of novel design which will avoid the above difiiculties.

Another object of the invention is to provide a magnetic core matrix assembly having means for arresting vibrations in conductor wires at places removed from the wire soldering points.

A further object of the inveniton is to provide an elastic tensioning terminal for connecting non-elastic conductor wires in magnetic core matrix assemblies.

Another object of the invention is to provide an elastic .tensioning terminal for magnetic core matrix assemblies which will permit deformation of the conductor wires out of the plane of the matrix within limits, as through accident or inadvertent handling, but will restore the conductor wires to the plane of the matrix when the deforming force has been removed.

A further object of the invention is to provide readily removable selflocking terminals for magnetic core matrixes and which permit rapid and economical dip soldering of a bank of such terminals.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a terminal which will facilitate testing of magnetic core matrixes in a rapid and efficient m-anner'before permanent connections of the conductor wires are made.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for applying the wire-wrapping method of connecting conductor wires in lieu of soldering if desired.

These and other objectives will readily become ap parent from the following detailed description of a specific embodiment of the invention and a modification thereof when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a magnetic core matrix assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention;

atent Q FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1 illustrating the novel terminal anchored to a matrix frame and the manner of supporting a conductor wire and connecting it to the terminal;

FIG. 3 is a side View of FIG. 2 taken in the direction of arrows 3-3;

- FIG. 4 illustrates one method of mounting the terminal connector to the matrix frame;

FIG. 5 shows the angular inclination of the terminal connector relative to the matrix frame before the cond-uotor wire is tensionally connected to the terminal connector;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the terminal connector;

FIG. 7 is a partial view of a modified form of the terminal connector; and

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of FIG. 7 takenin the direction of arrows 8-8.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the numeral 10 designates an annular matrix frame of insulating material, preferably of rectangular construction, comprising left and right margin members 12 and 14, and upper and lower margin members 16 and 18. A group of conductor wires 20 are strung across the frame opening 22 with the ends of each wire connected to two terminals 24 mounted oppositely to each other on margins 12 and 14 respectively. A second group of conductor wires 26 are similarly mounted and connected to terminals 24 on the upper and lower margins 16 and 18. As illustrated, the wires of each group are arranged preferably in spaced parallel relationship, with the wires of one group crossing over the wires of the other group and wherein all the wires of both groups lie substantially in the same plane, and, preferably superposed above the plane of frame 16 as seen more clearly in FIG. 2. A

magentic core 28 of the toroidal typeis supported at each of the cross-over points by a pair of wires which pass freely through the aperture of the core.

The terminals 24 are formed of an elastic conductive material, and preferably, are of one-piece construction. As seen in FIG. 2, the terminal has the general appearance of the letter M and comprises first a pair of spaced substantially parallel legs 30 and 32. At their lower portions (FIG. 6), each of the legs is provided with opposed edge notches 34 which form on the legs reduced width portions 36 and upper and lower shoulders 38 and-4t) respectively. The lower extremity of leg 30 is formed With a laterally extending indented foot 42.

At their upper portions, legs 3% and 32 curve down wardly to form knee portions 44 and 46 respectively and to merge into a V-shaped strip 4-8 having at the apex of the V a heel portion 50. Knee 46 is pierced to form a slot 52 (FIG. 3) and the pierced portion is deformed downwardly to form a curl 54 whose upper surface forms a curved bridge portion 56 at one end of the slot. Knee 44 is similarly pierced and deformed to form a horn 53.

Frame 14 is formed with pairs of slots 60 which run transversely to the plane of the frame. Each pair of slots on one margin is in alignment with a pair of slots on the opposite margin, and serves to receive a terminal 24 in a manner presently to be described.

As mentioned previously, terminals 24 are formed of an elastic material and are inserted by one method into their respective slots 60 by first spreading legs 30 and 32 outwardly of each other until the legs engage over the edges of frame it in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 4. The terminal is then pressed downwardly onto the frame until heel 5t) contacts the top face 62 of frame 10, at which point notches 34 on the terminal legs are not quite in alignment with frame 10 with respect to the thickness of the frame. Further pressure of the terminal onto the frame will bring notches 34 in alignment therewith and the reduced width portions 36 of the legs in alignment with frame slots 60, at which point the terminal legs will snap into place into the frame slots. Thus it will be seen that the terminal will now be anchored to the frame with shoulders 38 slightly above top face 62, shoulders 40 pressing against the bottom face 64 of the frame, and heel 50 pressing against top face 62.

It should be understood that heel t) pressing on face 62 constitutes a stiffening of the terminal structure, however, depending on the choice of material, dimensions and elasticity desired, this point of contact may be omitted. In such case, the strip 48 may take any concave form with its low point spaced above frame instead of being in contact with it.

As the terminal is thus inserted into the frame, bridge 56 will be in a higher plane or further removed from the frame than horn 58, and the terminal will have a configuration substantially similar to that shown in FIG. 5 in which the legs will be inclined outwardly of the frame.

In assembling conductor wires into the matrix, each Wire is threaded through the appropriate number of cores 28 and one end of the wire is connected to a terminal 24 at one of the margins by wrapping it about the terminal horn 58. The other end of the wire is then wrapped about the horn 58 of an aligned terminal at the opposite margin with the wire lying in the respective slots 52 and bearing on the bridges 56. This second connection is made by wrapping the wire about the horn with sufficient tension on the Wire to flex both terminals toward each other until they asstune a position substantially as shown in FIG. 2, with their bridges 56 still disposed in a higher plane or further removed from the frame 10 than their horns 58. The conductor wire is therefore pre-loaded and elastically tensioned owing to the elastic deformation of the terminals and, as now connected, makes a satisfactory contact with the horns. The latter feature is due to the rectangular cross-section of the horn whose four edges bite into the convolutions of the conductor wire wrapping. However, if desired, the wire connections at the horns may be soldered. In this respect, the projecting configuration of the horns outwardly of the matrix facilitates simultaneous dip-soldering of the wire connections.

Foot 42 on leg 30 serves as a connection point for conductor wires leading to other elements associated with the matrix assembly, and also as a temporary anchor and connection point when the matrix is being subjected to inspection or tests prior to final assembly. Accordingly, for these latter purposes the conductor wires are not wrapped about the horns but are led alongside the horns and downwardly to the respective feet 42 where they are temporarily wrapped with a few turns of wire. After the inspection or tests, permanent connections are made as described above.

FIG. 7 illustrates a modified form of the terminal connector which further facilitates testing of the matrix by eliminating the temporary wrapping on foot 42. For this purpose, there is provided an elastic jaw structure in place of the foot extending laterally from the lower extremity of leg 30 comprising a pair of elastic jaws 66 and 68 and a V-shaped tongue '70. The jaws are slightly flared outwardly of each other at the edges 72 and at the corners 74 to form a mouth portion for facilitating entry of the conductor wire into the pinch of the jaws and to avoid nicking or chafing of the conductor wire. Along a portion of their lower edges 76, the jaws are also flared or bent outwardly of each other to form a pinch line 78 extending from edges 72 to the end 89 of tongue 70. The inner opposed faces of the jaws are in abutting relation along the pinch line 78, or sufliciently close together to offer yielding resistance to the entry of a conductor wire.

The conductor wires are arranged for testing purposes by leading each Wire downward from alongside horn 58 and pulling the lower portion of the wire into the pinch of the jaws. As illustrated, the pinching line 78 is so .4 arranged that it is preferably perpendicular to the downwardly projecting Wire. Tongue serves as a stop member to limit insertion of the wire to the pinching area of the jaws. When the tests are completed, the wire is simply pulled out of the jaws and permanent connections are made in the manner previously described. Similarly to the foot 42 in the first described terminal, jaws 66 and 63 in the present modification serve also as a connection point for wires leading to other elements associated with the matrix assembly.

From the foregoing description, it will now be apparent that any vibrations in the conductor Wires will be arrested at the points where the wires are supported by the bridges, and thus prevented from reaching the soldered connections at the horns and causing troublesome breakage of the wires at those points. It will also be seen that the invention provides an elastic terminal for pro-loading and elastically tension-ing non-elastic conductor wires, and thus maintains the wires at all times in the plane of the matrix and renders the matrix assembly less subject to damage. Further, the invention provides for rapid and more efficient testing of matrix assemblies and, in addition, by reason of the projecting configuration of the horns, feet, and jaw members outwardly of the matrix, the assembly readily lends itself to simultaneous dip-soldering of the wire connections on a bank of such members.

While there have been described specific embodiments of the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention may be constructed in various forms. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the specific embodiments of the invention herein shown and described are illustrative only and that the invention may be constructed in various sizes, shapes and arrangements without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A terminal connector comprising, a pair of spaced elastic legs interconnected at one end by a strip member, anchor means on said legs for anchoring the connector to a mounting element, a bridge adjacent one of said legs providing a bearing for supporting a conductor wire under tension in a plane, and means to connect an end of said wire to said connector at a point removed from the bridge and lying out of the plane in which said bridge is supporting said wire.

2. A terminal connector according to claim 1 and including means on the terminal for connecting a wire leading to associated apparatus, said last mentioned means comprising a pair of substantially closed elastic jaws formed with a pinching line for yieldingly holding a wire inserted therein.

3. A terminal connector according to claim 2 and including a stop member to limit insertion of a wire to the pinching line of said jaws.

4. A terminal connector comprising, a pair of spaced substantially parallel legs interconnected at one end by a strip member, anchor means adjacent the opposite end of said legs removably locking said connector to a mounting panel comprising aligned notches forming reduced width portions on said legs for engaging mating portions in said panel, a bridge adjacent one of said legs for supporting a conductor Wire in a plane, and means to connect an end of said wire at a point removed from the bridge and lying out of the plane in which said bridge is supporting said wire.

5. A terminal connector according to claim 4 and including a foot extending from one end of one of said legs for connecting a wire leading to apparatus associated with said connector.

6. An elastic tensioning terminal formed of a strip of material and comprising, a pair of spaced substantially parallel legs of unequal length, aligned notches adjacent one end of said legs for anchoring the legs to a mounting panel, a bridge adjacent the opposite end of the longer leg for supporting a conductor wire in a plane above said panel, and a horn adjacent the opposite end of the shorter leg for connecting an end of said conductor wire in a lower plane above said panel than said first mentioned plane.

7. An elastic tensioning terminal formed of a strip of material and comprising, a pair of spaced substantially parallel legs of unequal length, aligned notches adjacent one end of said legs for anchoring the legs to a mounting panel, a bridge adjacent the opposite end of the longer leg for supporting a conductor wire in a plane above said panel, a horn adjacent the opposite end of the shorter leg for connecting an end of said conductor wire in a lower plane above said panel than said first mentioned plane, and a foot extending from the notched end of the shorter leg for connecting a wire leading to apparatus associated with said terminal, and wherein said terminal will flex elastically when the conductor wire is tensionally connected to said horn.

8. A terminal according to claim 7 and including a foot extending from said opposite end of the shorter leg for connecting a wire leading to apparatus associated with said terminal.

9. An elastic tensioning terminal comprisin a pair of spaced substantially parallel legs of unequal length interconnected at one end by a strip member, anchor means adjacent the opposite end of said legs for anchoring the legs to a mounting panel, a bridge adjacent the juncture of said strip and said longer leg for supporting a conductor wire in a plane above said panel, means adjacent the juncture of said strip and said shorter leg to connect an end of said wire in a lower plane above said panel than the plane in which the bridge supports said wire, and

means on said strip exerting pressure on a face of said panel and cooperating with portions of the anchoring means for stiffening said terminal and causing it to grip said panel, and wherein said terminal will flex elastically when the conductor wire is tensionally connected thereto.

10. A terminal connector comprising, a pair of spaced legs interconnected at one end by a strip member, anchor means on said legs for anchoring the connector to a mounting element, a bridge portion adjacent one ofsaid legs for supporting a conductor wire in a plane, means to connect an end of said wire at a point removed from the bridge portion and lying out of the plane of said bridge portion and wire, and a pair of elastic substantially closed jaws extending from one of said legs, said jaws being formed with a pinching line for yieldingly holding a wire inserted therein.

11. A terminal connector according to claim 10 an including a stop member to limit insertion of a wire to the pinching line of said jaws.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 185,127 Peck Dec. 5, 1876 633,263 Grant Sept. 19, 1899 1,135,736 Steuler Apr. 13, 1915 1,232,678 Gratiam July 10, 1917 2,544,645 Alwood Mar. 13, 1951 2,694,189 Wirsching Nov. 9, 1954 2,730,689 Lamb et a1 Jan. 10, 1956 2,846,672 Hennessey Aug. 5, 1958 2,860,394 McI-Iugh Nov. 18, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 686,971 Great Britain Feb. 4, 1953 OTHER REFERENCES Publication: Electronics, April 1953, published by Me- Graw-Hill, New York, NY. (the front cover and page 146). 

